Five Things to Watch in FSU vs. N.C. State

Published: Friday, October 25, 2013 at 04:12 PM.

Here are Five Things to Watch heading into Florida State’s Atlantic Coast Conference home game against North Carolina State:

1. Emotion: Bobby Bowden makes his return to Doak Campbell Stadium for the first time since 2009. More than 400 former players are expected to take part in the celebration and Bowden will plant the spear at midfield prior to the game. This is in addition to the fact North Carolina State pulled off an upset last year so you know there will be tons of emotion in this contest. The key is harnessing it for the better rather than letting it deflate the team. So far, that’s not been a problem for the Seminoles.

2. Bigger crowd: FSU’s previous three home games haven’t been packed to the brim. You can expect this to be the first real shutout of the season with fans urged to come early for the flyover and Bowden festivities.

3. New, old QB: The Wolfpack are set to start Brandon Mitchell at quarterback. He hasn’t played since breaking his foot in the season opener. This might be the worst game to put in a rusty signal-caller given how FSU’s defense has played in the last two games.

4. Speaking of D: FSU has given up 14 points in the last two games, including shutting out Maryland 63-0 Oct. 5. Players pointed to that game as the turnaround and so far that’s proved to be true. N.C. State’s offense is in the middle of the ACC in scoring, has lost two games in a row and could find the sledding difficult on Saturday.

5. More carries for Williams: James Wilder Jr. will miss the game with a concussion. This isn’t such bad news considering Devonta Freeman and Karlos Williams have been the most productive running backs for FSU thus far. Williams is second on the team with 263 yards rushing and is tops with six touchdowns and will see more carries against the Wolfpack.

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Here are Five Things to Watch heading into Florida State’s Atlantic Coast Conference home game against North Carolina State:

1. Emotion: Bobby Bowden makes his return to Doak Campbell Stadium for the first time since 2009. More than 400 former players are expected to take part in the celebration and Bowden will plant the spear at midfield prior to the game. This is in addition to the fact North Carolina State pulled off an upset last year so you know there will be tons of emotion in this contest. The key is harnessing it for the better rather than letting it deflate the team. So far, that’s not been a problem for the Seminoles.

2. Bigger crowd: FSU’s previous three home games haven’t been packed to the brim. You can expect this to be the first real shutout of the season with fans urged to come early for the flyover and Bowden festivities.

3. New, old QB: The Wolfpack are set to start Brandon Mitchell at quarterback. He hasn’t played since breaking his foot in the season opener. This might be the worst game to put in a rusty signal-caller given how FSU’s defense has played in the last two games.

4. Speaking of D: FSU has given up 14 points in the last two games, including shutting out Maryland 63-0 Oct. 5. Players pointed to that game as the turnaround and so far that’s proved to be true. N.C. State’s offense is in the middle of the ACC in scoring, has lost two games in a row and could find the sledding difficult on Saturday.

5. More carries for Williams: James Wilder Jr. will miss the game with a concussion. This isn’t such bad news considering Devonta Freeman and Karlos Williams have been the most productive running backs for FSU thus far. Williams is second on the team with 263 yards rushing and is tops with six touchdowns and will see more carries against the Wolfpack.